In a media tour in Malaysia's Banding Island near Tasik Temenggor in the state of Perak last week, Albert Altena, CEO of Trapia Malaysia Sdn Bhd, announced that the company was preparing for the largest odorless tilapia farm in the world.
Trapia announced its plan to build tilapia farms in Tasik Temenggor, Tasik Kenering and Sungai Dala, all in the state of Perak, last year. In September, Trapia conducted a pilot experiment in the Fisheries Department test laboratory in Temenggor. The breeding farm, when fully operational in 2010, will have a production capacity of 137,400 metric tons.
Trapia, short for Traceable Tilapia, in its effort to breed high-quality, odorless tilapia, will equip the farms with genetic tracing technology developed by Norwegian company Genomar AS. The technology will enable Trapia to take tissue samples from the fish to trace their genetic patterns.
Trapia had used the technology for years to help find genetic defects in the early stage, noted Altena. He assured the media that the tilapia weren't genetically modified. He added that the tilapia bred in Temenggor had gone through multiple crossbreeding to produce higher quality seafood, specifying that it was the 17th generation of broodstock that would be used in the farm.
At the end of the media orientation, Altena commented that the state of Perak was chosen for its clean water, free from general pollution and industrial waste contamination. The area would be the perfect breeding ground for Trapia's fish.
